Five-Pointed Devestation
by ashardoffreedom
Summary: DWMA and the Star Clan face off- but it's not the clean-cut massacre that it's supposed to be. Now raging into a long-fought war, with the witches playing both sides, students are trained for war. Stuck in the middle of it all is a girl who might be the key to ending it all and a boy who's no longer sure which side he's on. EPIC. SoMa and TsuStar.
1. Track One

**A/N: **I'm ashardoffreedom, better known as Shard of Freedom, and this is my new fanfic. Since I already have a couple of stories going, I wasn't going to post this story until way later, but I just got a sudden plot bunny chewing at my ear and wrote, well, about fourteen chapters of this. For those of you who are following Shadow Reign (my LoZ story), it's not going to be abandoned and the next update should be up in a few days. By the way, for this fanfic, I'm going to try to update within a week of each update, but I'm going to make sure that I have enough chapters on the back burner so that there's no month long waits in between updates.

**Summary: **DWMA and the Star Clan face off- but it's not the clean-cut massacre that it's supposed to be. Now raging into a long-fought war, with the witches playing both sides, students are trained for war. In the middle of it all is a girl who may be the key to ending it all and a boy who's no longer sure which side he's on. EPIC.

This idea came to me a while back, when I realized that there aren't really any good action Soul Eater fanfiction. Naturally, I had to contribute. I worked out all of the major details last week, writing them on the back of receipts at my work. So, I hope that you enjoy this fanfic, because I'm really proud of it!

Anyway, I don't own Soul Eater and this disclaimer goes for all continuing chapters.

As for any "canon" issues, I will mention that I have read the manga and have only watched like, half of the anime. So I'm going off of the manga's version of things.

By the way, all of my titles are "tracks" like the ones on a CD. So it'll be a bit different, especially when I do flashbacks.

Read, Review and Enjoy!

~Shard of Freedom

* * *

_**Track One: Bring Down the Stars**_

_(Play) _

Death hung in the air.

Sid leaned against the tree. His headband was tried close around his forehead and his deadlocks were slicked back. His tan skin was covered in form-fitting black attire, and he seemed to fade into the darkness around him. Sheathed in his holster, Nygus was already in weapon form, ready for any attack.

But in this battle, Sid was an observer, a watchdog carefully listening at his perch. By the orders of Death, he wasn't to get involved in this battle. It wasn't his place.

Over his com-link, voices crackled.

"_Red 4 in position . . . no sign of change . . . enemy out of sight . . ." _

"_Red 12 reporting . . . nothing's here . . . an abandoned camp . . . Be careful! They're coming!" _

"_Red 7 and Red 15 have engaged the enemy! Red 13 is heading to provide backup!" _

Sounds of a fight, of metal scrapping against metal and of blades sinking into flesh filled the connection. Sighing, Sid removed his hand from the connection. He could only hope that the battle turned out well for their side. But against their opponents, there was little hope. It was a recon team. They weren't made for battle.

Suddenly, the com-link crackled once more.

A smooth, soft voice entered.

"_Gold reporting in. I've been sent as backup." _

Sid placed a hand to the small device. "Find the position of Red 7. They have engaged the enemy there. Be careful out there. We don't need any more losses. Report to me when you get there."

"_Of course, sir. Gold out." _

As Gold's voice left the com-link, others, from the unnamed soldiers that Sid had been sent to watch over entered once more.

"_Red 7, 13 and 14 have died. Red 3 and 6 have engaged the enemy in battle!" _

"_Holy shit! It's White Star! Get out! Get out!" _

"_Unknown entity entering the battlefield!" _

"_It's a friendly, it's a friendly! Sir, Gold has entered into combat!" _

"_3 and 4 have died!" _

Out of the jumbled mess of messages received over the connection, only one stood out to him strongly. Sid's blood ran could when he placed his hand to the com-link quickly.

"Red 12, confirm. Is it really White Star?"

"_Affirmative, sir. Our team's dropping like flies." _

Sending the message out to all of the operatives in the field, Sid quickly spoke again.

"All of you, get out! Now! This isn't the right battle! Retreat!"

The com-link crackled.

"_This is Gold. Would you like me to leave with the others?"_

"For Death's sake, Kid, get out of there! You're good, but not that good!"

There was a moment of pause and heavy breathing before a response was given. _"I have engaged White Star in battle! Getting out isn't an option for me!" _

The connection between the two of them broke off, leaving Sid with nothing but static.

"Nygus?" Sid asked softly.

Her sweet voice echoed back to him. "Yeah, Sid?"

"I was never the sort of man who would leave a comrade to die." Sid drew Nygus out of her sheath, flipping the blade into a backhand. "It looks like we're going to have to disobey orders this time."

Sid could sense the smile in Nygus's voice as she responded.

"Of course."

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

The DWMA was an imposing building. Maka had heard stories about it before the war—when students came here to actually learn to become better meisters and weapons, instead of soldiers in the war. But now it was tall and intimidating, with two-star meisters and weapons no older than herself stalking the grounds, the black-and-gold badge on their arm the only way to tell them apart from the students.

Maka had wanted to come here since she was a little girl, and Mama had told her stories about how Papa had been turned into one of Death's weapons, a Death Scythe. She had wanted to be just like her mother when she was little.

Maka's goals had changed little from that time . . . but they had changed.

Outside the school very few people talked, all hurried to get out of the open. Even though it was highly improbable that there would be an attack on the DWMA, few liked to linger outside of the building. Maybe it was the frightening skull masks that lingered on the outside, like a harbinger of Death.

Maka tightened the ties on her ponytails and adjusted her plaid skirt before lifting her head high and walking past the guards on the way into the academy. She wouldn't let a little thing like nervousness get the best of her. She was going to be a powerful meister. This wouldn't stop her.

Maka took a deep breath and stepped inside of the building.

Unlike the outside of the school building, the inside was filled with both the warm, cozy smell of vanilla, but also of chatter. There were a lot of students milling around in the halls—it was orientation after all—but Maka slowly made her way through the crowd, trying to find the table where she would register and be assigned a weapon.

Maka's mother had once told her that, when she had attended DWMA, you would choose your own partners. However, that was deemed to be too trying, especially during the war. Now, they would just judge your wavelength and match you with a weapon that would be easiest to resonate with. That would be your partner. In two years—if you were good, maybe less—you would be sent out to the battlefield.

As Maka flitted through the hordes of people, she caught snippets of conversation.

"Did ya hear that Death's son got assigned a mission all by himself? Lucky bastard, I can't wait to get out there . . ."

"I don't know, the war's dangerous. And with the witches fighting as well . . ."

"People say that they saw White Star on the last mission. You know, the leader of the Star Clan?"

" . . . I'm not sure if I'll be a good weapon, I mean I'm pretty weak . . ."

"I've heard about this kid here. They say he haunts the halls like a ghost . . ."

Maka ignored them all as she headed to the registration table. It was manned by a strange looking man with a screw in his head and stitches across both his face and his lab coat. He had gray hair and glasses perched on his nose, but Maka didn't get the impression that he was old. In fact, he looked to be around her Papa's age.

"Name?" The man said tiredly.

"Maka Albarn," she stated directly.

The man looked up at her in surprise. "That means that you're Spirit-sempai's daughter, doesn't it?"

Maka blinked twice. "Spirit-sempai? You know my father?"

The man suddenly acquired a sadistic grin. "We've met." For some odd reason, he began laughing softly, and Maka had the strange urge to just turn around and leave the registration table behind, because he was seriously giving her the creeps.

As quickly as it came, the man calmed down and placed his arms on the back of the desk chair he was sitting in.

"Alright, Maka Albarn, let's see what we have here. Meister or weapon?"

"Meister."

"Unsurprising. Although you would make for an interesting test subject . . ."

"What was that?" Maka said coldly, cutting through the man's muttering.

"Nothing. Nothing at all. As a meister, do you have any specialties?" He asked carefully. Turning the screw in his head, he tilted his head sideways and looked at her curiously.

Maka flinched. Something felt abnormally wrong. "Scythes. Or any long-handled weapon."

"Intriguing. Take after your mother, do you?" the man said, his eyes hidden by the shine of his glasses.

Despite the people around her, Maka felt the room go silent and the air grow cold. Logically, she knew that nothing had changed, that everything was the same as normal, but Maka couldn't help but freeze under the gaze of this bespectacled professor. Suddenly, that question had made Maka's blood run cold.

But then the world returned to normal as Maka took a deep, calming breath and tried to relax her erratic soul wavelength.

"Yes." She stated with a determined look in her green eyes. "I do take after my mother."

The man smiled. "Well, then. Welcome to the DWMA. Let's see if we can pair you with a weapon then."

Suddenly, the man began to roll away from the registration table on his desk chair, motioning for Maka to follow him while he shouted over his shoulder.

"Marie! Cover for me!"

"Gotcha!" A sweet female voice responded.

Maka followed slowly behind the man as he made his way through the halls. As they moved further along, the amount of people dwindled and dwindled until they were the only people in the hallways. The wheels on the desk chair echoed through the halls. Maybe it was just the way that Maka was, but she had a distinct feeling of foreboding as she glanced around her, ready for attack.

"Um . . ."

"Professor Stein," the man supplied. "I'm a teacher here at DWMA. I teach practically all subjects to advanced students, although my specialty is dissection."

"Where exactly are we going?"

Stein didn't respond for a moment before turning to Maka as his chair continued to roll down the hallways, Maka following closely behind.

Instead of answering her question, he said, "You can sense souls, can't you?"

"How did you know?"

"You flinched when I examined your soul earlier. Only a fellow high-level meister could do that. You don't seem to be the most physical fighter, and you don't have a strong enough soul to perform Soul Menace. However, your Soul Perception and Resonance capabilities seem quite strong. You would do well with a weapon that was molded to your strengths."

"So where are you taking me?" Maka said carefully, looking around at the hallowed halls of the DWMA carefully.

"To meet my assistant. He might be of some use to you."

Maka didn't know what else to say as she walked behind the strange professor. She had always considered herself easy to think on her feet, but this was completely out of her depth. Maka had come to the DWMA to receive a partner who would hopefully help her achieve her end goal. She prayed that that was still the case.

As they walked (or well, Maka walked. Stein rolled. Or some equivalent of that.), Maka couldn't help but noticing that the torches were fewer and fewer and the path kept getting darker and darker. It was the middle of the day, for Death's Sake! There was no need for her to be worried. She was with a professor and he wouldn't do anything to hurt her, right?

Right?

Suddenly she wasn't so sure of herself anymore.

Stein's rolling stopped in front of a door that looked . . . stitched together? Was that even the right words? On the right side of the . . . stitched-together door was a flickering light bulb that did not help relieve the nervous tremors from Maka's stomach. Why did she have a distinct feeling that something uncontrollable was lingering just beyond that door?

Footsteps echoed through the dead-end hallway. Maka gulped.

The door came crashing down, and suddenly a vision of a demon was in front of her.

"STEIN!"

The professor looked up at the monstrosity with a curious expression. He rubbed the back of his head and chuckled nervously for a moment. "Um . . . it was in the name of science?"

"THE NAME OF SCIENCE MY ASS! YOU PROMISED! YOU SWORE TO DEATH HIMSELF THAT YOU WOULD NOT, I REPEAT, NOT DO EXPERIMENTS ON ME! SO WHY DID I WAKE UP WITH THE TOES OF MY RIGHT AND LEFT FEET SWITCHED?"

Steign sighed. He glanced over at the wide-eyed young girl and sighed. "It was so much easier when it was your father, Maka-chan . . ." Stein said wistfully. He turned back to the imposing figure, whose rage had not lessened one bit.

"How about a deal? I'll put your toes back the way they were and you give me the tiniest sample of your blood?"

"NOT ON YOUR LIFE! I'D RATHER LET KID PLUCK MY EYEBROWS!"

Stein looked up curiously. "Well, if you're that unhappy, why don't you leave? I've got the perfect opportunity for you." Stein gestured to the girl behind him.

Now that the demonic aura had died down, Maka could see that it was a man of about eighteen years with stark white hair and for a moment that made her think that he and Professor Stein were related. But other than that, they looked nothing alike. He had red eyes and a lazy expression, with a white lab coat over a blue t-shirt and jeans. His hair was held back with a black headband, which should have made him look girlish, but did nothing of the sort for him.

Maka gave the boy a small wave and a smile, determined not to be intimidated.

Soul gave her a once-over, looking at her long cape-jacket and short plaid skirt. Maka had her hair up in the girlish ponytails she had been found of as a child, but luckily she had come into her sorts when she was sixteen, and filled out a little bit, so she no longer looked like the washboard ten-year-old she had been thought of when she was thirteen. She had just hit her seventeenth year, she looked like a woman and she was damn proud of that.

"Okay, Stein, who's Pigtails over there?"

Maka crossed her arms. He was rude, definitely rude.

"Soul, this is Maka Albarn, a new meister here at DWMA. Maka, this is Soul "Eater" Evans, my lab assistant and a scythe weapon. You guys are going to be partners."

For a moment, Soul looked shocked and almost happy, but a dark shadow came over his face. He gave Stein a meaningful look and glanced over at Maka.

"Not on your life, Stein. I don't need a partner."

Stein pulled out a cigarette from his jacket pocket. "You don't have a choice in the matter, Soul. You're a scythe. Maka's a scythe meister. But of course, if you really wanted to stay as a lab assistant, I had some experiments that I wanted to try out . . ."

Suddenly, Soul had latched onto Maka's arm and pulled her out of the hallway with a hurried chant of "Hi, Maka, my name's Soul Eater and it looks like we'll partners from now on; how's the weather anyway?"

As Stein was left alone in the hallway, breathing out smoke as the light bulb flickered next to him. He took off his glasses slowly, watching the two of them as they left.

"Don't worry, Soul. You might have longer than you think."

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

In the beginning, there was no name for it.

Now, they called it the Star War.

DWMA could tell when the Star Clan began to walk the path of a Kishin. Sending out operatives, they planned the total annihilation of the devious clan. But it didn't work out like that. In a desperate attempt to continue their thirst for power, the Star Clan allied themselves with the witches, working towards the same goal of creating another Kishin.

It had been eighteen years since then.

The witches were now known as free agents, just as willing to play both sides to achieve whatever goal they wished. But many wished for the revival of madness, and flocked behind the Star Clan's banner.

It had turned into an all-out war. And it didn't look like it was going to come to a close any time soon.

DWMA was desperate to stop the formation of another Kishin. They recruited more weapons and more meisters, eventually accepting even regular soldiers into the ranks. The fights with the witches got more deadly and the war became even more widespread. The only sanctuary from the war seemed to be Death City, the sight of the headquarters of DWMA and a haven for those who wished the escape the hardships that the war had thrown at them.

The Star Clan lived to fight. When the DWMA decided to end their tribe, they fought back with a vengeance. In order to protect their pursuit of power, their alliance with the witches grew only stronger, causing more loss of life.

No one knew how the war was going to end.

Only that it would continue.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

" _. . . Kid, Kid! Can you hear me? Nygus and I are on our way!" _

"_Sid, we won't make in there in time!" _

"_Sid-sensei! Patty's injured bad! I . . . I can't fight with just Liz!" _

"_Come on, Kid! Now's not the time to be worried about symmetry!" _

"_It's not that! I don't think that I can beat him with just one weapon! It's not anywhere near my fighting style! . . . Stay back!" _

_Gunshots._

"_Hang on, Kid, we're coming!" _

_Nothing but static. _

"_Kid! KID!" _

_More static. _

"_Sid, we have to hurry!" _

_A new voice came in over the intercom. One that Sid recognized very well. _

"_No need to worry. Black incoming." _

_The line went dead. _


	2. Track Two

**A/N: **Welcome back to Five-Pointed Devestation! I was pleasantly surprised by the response that I got for Track One! TsuStar isn't a well-loved pairing within the Soul Eater fandom-not nearly as much as SoMa-so I was really happy when I found out that people actually liked what I had written. Thanks to everyone who reviewed: **author-144 **/ **chibijac **(I love your TsuStar stories by the way; I've read all of them) / and anonymous review **Random ReviewerX**.

Read, Review and Enjoy!

~Shard of Freedom

* * *

_**Track Two: Don't Got No Fight Left**_

_(Play)_

"Do you really think that this is a good idea?"

Death looked up through the holes in his mask. For a long time, he had worn the comical, cartoonish mask in order to raise his son, Death the Kid, around some sort of normalcy, but ever since the war had started over eighteen years ago with the Star Clan, he had resorted back the mask that he had used to wear before the Kishin had occurred.

"What do you mean, Stein?" Death responded in his careful tones. "Is this about Kid's mission?"

Stein shook his head. He had been around this school for a long time. After graduating, he had returned to the old stomping grounds of his youth once the war had started. After all, humans truly being devoured by the basest instincts to become stronger . . . it all just sounded like one good dissection.

"Not about Kid. He'll make a good recovery, I made sure of that when he was brought back. I'm talking about Soul. And Maka. Do you really think that it's smart to pair those two together?"

"Maka is the only one who can help Soul Eater now," Death said crisply. "I can't waste another soldier, especially not a weapon and a meister as skilled as the two of them are."

"You know as well as I do that Soul can fight just as well without a partner as he can fight with one. Even I can feel the effects of his Soul Hack. On _my _soul. He has truly frightening abilities. He doesn't need a meister to be strong. You're putting Maka in danger."

"How?" Death said callously, leaning his head to side, giving his body a shaky appearance.

Stein threw his cigarette down on the ground of Death's Mirror Room, crushing the ashes under his boot. "You know just as well 'how.' Soul cannot partner with anyone. You understand this just as well as I do."

"Soul-kun is one of our best weapons. He has the ability to fight both alone and with a partner. There's no reason that he shouldn't have been made into a Death Scythe by now."

"Because we all know how dangerous evolution would get for Soul," Stein said. "He's powerful enough as it is. Evolving will cause nothing but destruction."

"But still, that witch soul is just wasting away in our cabinets . . ."

"We both know that Soul partnering with someone shouldn't happen. Why are you pushing this?"

Death paused for a moment. "Medusa."

Stein, who was reaching for another cigarette, allowed his hand to drop back down to his side. "She's back?"

Death nodded. "And with a vengeance. We need the best of the best. Which means that we need the 'Problem Two' to find partners."

"Still. No one should have to partner with Soul. You know his track record."

"Enlighten me."

Stein lit a cigarette and placed it in between his lips before speaking. He breathed out a puff of smoke before tapping the ashes onto the floor.

"Every single person who partners with Soul Eater dies."

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

"_Thanks for saving us back there. We owe you one." _

"_. . . That Grim Reaper. Is he going to be okay?"_

"_Yeah, Professor Stein says that he's going to make a full recovery." _

"_. . . If you say so. What was he thinking, taking on White Star alone?" _

"_He wanted to protect the people that he cared about. Surely you understand. After all, you rescued him, didn't you?" _

"_All I did was run away." _

"_Still, you did save him."_

" _. . . Don't make me out to be the hero of this story."_

"_Why not?" _

"_Because an assassin should stick the shadows." _

"_What happened to all of your talk about surpassing God?" _

" _. . . God was surpassed a long time ago. By a man named White Star."_

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

"Um . . . can you stop dragging me now?" Maka said hopefully.

Soul glanced back at her before leading the both of them into an empty classroom and waving a hand to one of the desks.

Maka sat down on the edge of the desk carefully, pulling one of her knees closer to her chest. She took a deep breath and prepared to speak.

"Do you want to be partners with me?"

Soul's smooth voice cut over her unuttered words easily. Maka looked a bit confused at the question.

"What do you mean? I didn't think that we had a choice in who we are partnered with."

"Yeah, but they'll make an exception in my case. As a weapon, I'm not very . . . stable. It's been a long time since I was partnered with anyone, and well, the partnership didn't turn out very well for them. Which is why I'm Stein's lab assistant and resident guinea pig instead of fighting with the rest of the students."

Maka tilted her head to the side. "Don't you want a partner?"

Soul shrugged. "I don't necessarily have to have one. Unlike most weapons, I can fight by myself." Soul paused for a moment before red and black scythe blades grew out of his lower arms. He showed them to Maka before shattering the blades into white light.

"Maka, my soul is broken. There's no need for you to be troubled by this."

Maka grabbed Soul's now unbladed arm. She looked into his cautious red eyes with her fierce green ones. "You don't understand. I have a goal that I need to achieve—and soon. And in order to achieve that, I need a weapon. You're a long-handled scythe, right?"

Hesitantly, with an unreadable look on his face, Soul nodded.

"That's my specialty. I need power to achieve my goals. Which means that I need you to be my weapon. I don't have a choice in the matter. And as far as I'm concerned, neither do you."

Maka was serious. She didn't know who he was or where he came from or what his baggage was, but she needed a weapon. It was the only reason that she had come to DWMA. Professor Stein seemed to think that they had compatible soul wavelengths, and that was good enough for her. She _needed _a weapon. And soon.

"You really want to be my meister?" Soul asked hesitantly.

"Do you honestly want to be my weapon?" Maka retorted.

Soul looked at her with one eye. "Well, don't say that I didn't warn you when things go sour. I'm definitely not the easiest weapon to handle out there."

Maka placed a hand on her slim hips defiantly. "I'm sure that I can take whatever you can dish out."

"That's what they all said," Soul mumbled underneath his breath.

"What was that?" Maka said sharply.

"Oh, nothing. Let's get to know each other, shall we?"

Maka relaxed for a moment, kicking her feet back and forth in the air, staring at the ground. "Well, my name's Maka Albarn. The current Death Scythe, Spirit, is my father, although I don't really like him that much. I like reading and learning how to do new things. My greatest offensive weapon as a meister is my ability to see souls."

Soul nodded and sat onto of one of the desks, crossing his legs loosely. "Well then, I suppose that it's my turn then. My name's Soul Evans, although here I'm known as Soul Eater, because I don't really like my family, something I guess we have in common. I consider myself to be a pretty cool guy. My best talent is music, although I don't play very much. My best offensive ability as a weapon is my ability to use Noise Cancelling and Soul Hack."

Silence stretched before Soul looked at her nervously. "Are you sure that you want to do this? I mean, seriously? It's not easy being partnered with me."

Maka brushed a hand through the air. "Why do you keep asking me that? I've made up my mind."

Maka gave a small smile. "And when I make up my mind, nothing can change it."

For some strange reason that not even he could explain, Soul smiled back. "Well, then. Looks like you're in for a rough ride."

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

The world was blurry. And henceforth, unsymmetrical. That alone made Kid get up from his bed. But as he straightened up, the world seemed to tilt and he brought a hand to his head.

"Kid!" A voice said softly, as if in awe.

The young shinigami turned to his right to see one of his partners leaning over the bed with a radiant smile on her face. Liz had gone without the cowboy hat today, tying her hair up in a loose ponytail on the top of her head.

Kid gave his partner a small smile. Hesitantly, Liz wrapped her arms around Kid's body, being careful of his wounds. Kid didn't know what he was supposed to do when he realized that Liz's body was shaking and she was crying into his shoulder.

"Kid, I was so scared that I was going to lose you and Patty. I was going to be alone again in the world. You guys, you mean the world to me, you know? Don't . . . Don't you dare leave me alone like that, okay? Me and Patty will kill you if you do, ya hear me?"

Kid placed a bandaged hand on Liz's back and patted softly before removing the girl from his chest. He paused for a moment as he looked around.

"What about Patty? She made it back, right? I . . . I don't remember much."

Liz exhaled slowly and slumped back in the rigid plastic chair she was sitting in. As Liz adjusted herself, Kid was able to look around long enough to recognize that they were inside the DWMA infirmary.

He must have screwed up royally.

"Don't worry. Patty'll be fine. Professor Stein and Lord Death are with her now, making sure that she has a full recovery. I . . . wasn't allowed in, so I thought that I would stay with you for the time being."

"What happened, Liz?"

"Well, you probably remember our mission, right? Ya know, go and help out Sid's recon team as they scoped out the border territories. Well, we got there and we helped out—since some of the squad was being attacked by Star Clan members—but then things got really bad. There was this guy—he fought like a demon. People said that it was White Star. We got in a fight with him. He injured Patty really bad. After that, you and I lost our focus. I got thrown from your hand. I'm pretty sure that you were going to be killed—and then we were saved."

"By Sid and Nygus?"

Liz shook her head. "No. It was this guy covered in black attire and white bandages. For a moment I thought that it was another assassin to help out White Star. But he just suddenly appeared, stabbed White Star in the hand with a shuriken, grabbed you and Patty and disappeared. A few moments later, Sid came and grabbed me before forcing White Star back."

Kid tilted his head slightly, running a hand through his white and black striped hair. "So you don't know who saved us?"

"Well, the guy brought us back to DWMA, so I'm assuming that it's a student here. There didn't seem to be a weapon on him though, so I couldn't be sure. I mean, there were normal weapons and stuff, but he didn't seem to have a partner. And he definitely wasn't one himself. Sid seemed to be close with him though, so I wasn't that worried about it."

Kid paused for a moment before starting to unwrap the bandages around his hands. "So, how long have I been out?"

"Just two days. Considering the extent of your injuries, it should have been a lot worse," a voice said from behind the white privacy curtains of the infirmary. Holding a clipboard in hand and perched on his typical rolling chair was Professor Stein, looking at the two of them from above the rims of his oval-shaped glasses.

"You guys are really lucky, I hope you know that. If Black hadn't shown up when he did, you guys would have been dead."

Kid sat up slowly. "Black?"

Stein nodded. "That's what he goes by here. Before you ask, Kid, I don't know either. If you want to talk to him, you'll have to find him yourself. He doesn't stick around here much."

Kid dropped back down onto the bed, even the small actions that he had been doing exhausting him. "How bad were our losses?"

"We lost half the team, I won't lie to you about that. But no one thought that White Star was going to join the fray himself. You did good, holding him back for that long."

"Well, I don't have time to be idle. How long until Patty's well again?"

Stein glanced over the rim of his glasses. "Kid, Patty's hurt bad. It'll probably take a few more days to heal, even with Kim working hard to help her. If you're thinking of doing rigorous training, you might want to leave Patty out of your plans for it for at least a week."

Kid scowled. "The war won't wait for a week."

"But you will." Stein blew out a low stream of smoke. "Your father just sent out another team to your location. Your friend, Will, is going as backup."

Liz glanced up at Stein for the first time, moving her eyes away from Kid. "Tsubaki's partner?"

Stein nodded. Seeing the look on Liz's face, he raised an eyebrow. "Is there something wrong with that?"

Kid placed an arm in front of Liz, placing himself between Liz and Stein. "We're just friends with them, that's all."

Stein's eyebrow remained cocked, but he was silent on the matter.

"Get some rest, Kid. You'll probably be on minor missions until Patty is back in commission, starting tomorrow."

Stein started rolling away, but paused before leaving the infirmary room.

"As well, two things that you should know: Soul has a new partner. She doesn't know about his track records or his . . . issues, so you would be wise not to mention them to her until he decides to come clean about them. The second thing . . ." Stein paused for a good minute as he exhaled smoke. "Your favorite dead witch has been spotted."

Kid's blood went cold as Stein shut the door.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

Tsubaki didn't know what to think when it came to Will.

He was her partner, she understood that. He was . . . what, her fifth partner? Will handled her better than most of the others, she could admit that. But still, there was something missing.

There was always something missing, ever since two years ago, back when she was sixteen.

Maybe the hole in her soul would heal with a good partner. Tsubaki thought that every time that she was reassigned because her current partner was inadequate. They were always the same excuses. Always the same lines from the top dogs at DWMA. She had heard them all.

Her meister was better suited towards a weapon that didn't change forms.

He couldn't handle her properly.

He didn't understand the true nature of a battlefield.

But Tsubaki knew the truth. The people who handled her were good meisters, she would admit. Will was a good meister. But they didn't know how to handle _her _properly. They knew how to use her individual forms, that was true enough. But they didn't know how to handle _her_, as a whole. She was a fluid weapon. She was meant to change in the middle of a battle, to surprise the opponent. She was a shadow weapon. And they were good warriors, her previous partners . . . but none of them were good enough to handle her.

Will wasn't any different.

He was cold. Compared to the other people who handled her, he was cold. He never made conversation, never tried to understand her as a person and not as a weapon. And in a way, she understood. There was no need for him to get close to her. Both of them knew that Will wasn't permanent. He was DWMA's replacement until they found someone that could maybe handle her. Will recognized that he was only a notch in her belt of masters. Which meant that he had no reason to be nice to her.

He had lasted longer than most of her meisters. Going on six months.

The reason was probably because he didn't get close to her. There was nothing other than their professional relationship. There was no feelings, no friendship. Tsubaki submitted to Will and allowed him to be in charge no matter the situation. Tsubaki didn't particularly like Will as a person, but she was tolerant and caring towards him.

After all, she had never known what it would be like without a meister.

She didn't want to dive into that unknown territory.

But still, something was missing, the way that it always was.

She knew what it was. It was why she never truly got close to her partners.

DWMA knew what it was. It was why they always reassigned her in hopes that she would come across someone who was strong enough to handle it.

Her previous partners knew what it was. It was why they didn't fight their reassignment, why they didn't talk to her in the hallways, why she spent her days in the Academy as a sort of outcast, separate from the rest of them.

Will knew what it was. It was why their relationship never went beyond professional, why he flinched some times what she touched him while she was in human form, why he looked at her in disgust when she transformed.

Not one of her partners had ever touched the Uncanny Sword.

* * *

UoUoUoUoU

* * *

"_Do you have a mission for me?" _

"_No." _

"_Then why are you here? You're not Sid, you're not Nygus, so you don't have the right to be here." _

"_I may not be Sid, but I am the reason that this school exists. I wanted to thank you for saving my son. I know that it must have been difficult for you." _

"_Not too difficult. Not for the man who's going to surpass God, right?" _

_A sigh. "You used to accompany that phrase with a larger than life smile. What happened to that child?" _

"_I grew up. I joined the war effort—on the wrong side, apparently." _

"_You can't honestly believe that." _

"_It doesn't matter if I do or I don't. Now, why are you really here?" _

"_. . . Medusa's been spotted. And if she's alive, there's a high chance that Arachne's back as well." _

"_Told you that they weren't dead. It was far too easy. After all, I wasn't even called in on that mission." _

"_Well, if we have any hope of outlasting this, now that our two strongest opponents have chosen a different side, we need extra fire power." _

" _. . . what are you saying?" _

"_We want you to find a weapon. Soul has found a partner as well." _

_A short, humorless laugh. "You're sending Soul in there? Against _Medusa_? Do you want him to die?" The voice was cold. _

"_Well, I was hoping that I wouldn't have to send him in on that mission. Of course, if you were to find a partner, or have one found for you, I wouldn't have to go to such measures . . ." _

"_You're blackmailing me with Soul's life. That's low, Death, even for you." _

"_My son—a Grim Reaper—almost died in a battle against White Star. If we are going to have any chance against him and the witches, we need stronger soldiers." _

"_You need me." _

"_Yes. Which is why you're going to find a weapon and start training with him or her—in a classroom, with the rest of the students." _

"_And if I refuse?" _

"_Then I'll send Soul in your place." _

"_Damn you." _

" _. . . All's fair in love and war. I'll take that as a yes."_


	3. Track Three

**A/N: **Yay, Track Three! I'm sorry about not updating, but I'm sure that anyone who's had both a summer job and classes understands how little time I have. Anyway, I just felt like updating. So here you go.

Reviewers: **LeprechaunGreen **/ **author-144 **/ and anonymous reviewer **Random Reviewer X **

This chapter contains the first flashback. There will be both in-chapter flashbacks and entire chapter flashbacks. This is an in-chapter flashback that's only a couple paragraphs.

Read, Review and Enjoy!

~Shard of Freedom

* * *

_**Track Three: The Weeping Willow**_

_(Play) _

Tsubaki followed Will in her human form. It was odd for him. Usually he would have her immediately transform into the ninja sword, which was the form that he was most comfortable with.

She hated him for that.

She wasn't just one form. She wasn't supposed to be used like other weapons. And while Tsubaki hated that she was special, that didn't mean that she wasn't supposed to be used to her fullest abilities.

But it was Will, and she didn't argue.

Will had been assigned the codename Silver.

Although "cocky" was one of those emotions that never showed on Will's face, Tsubaki could detect hints of it in his eyes.

Tsubaki made sure that she remained at least three feet behind him as they jumped through the trees. Will's long red hair was tied into a ponytail and he adjusted his fingerless gloves as they ran, stretching the leather across his knuckles.

Tsubaki's outfit matched his. She wore a complete black bodysuit that she found to be immodest considering that it was skintight, but she didn't let Will know that. Her hair was tied at the nape of her neck. It wasn't nearly as long as she wanted it to be, cut off at shoulder-length, but it was "suitable for the battlefield."

Not for the first time, she wondered how long Will would be her partner.

It was cruel, but Tsubaki found herself wishing that her partnership with him would end soon.

Although her other partners had always been dominant personalities—apparently, according to DWMA, it suited her wavelength best—none of them had controlled her life quite the same way that Will had. Maybe it was because Will had lasted for nearly half a year. But with Will, she didn't feel herself. She just was more and more aware of that echoing empty feeling that filled every corner of her heart.

She supposed that their mission was important and that was why Will was so happy because he had gotten recognition. Tsubaki didn't really understand it. Tsubaki had been at the Academy for three years before she had acquired the Uncanny Sword, which immediately enabled her to become a field agent. She had been in the field for two years as a weapon, always held by different meisters.

She didn't understand how this mission was any better.

Tsubaki still had to fight and still waited for the threat of dying to finally catch up to her.

Even as she thought about her possible death, she just couldn't conjure up the necessary emotions to feel fear or sorrow about that fact.

After all, she was a Camellia blossom.

She had no scent.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

Kid walked through the halls with his head held high. It had been four days since he had gotten out of the hospital, and in those four days he hadn't fought, he hadn't slept and he hadn't attended any of his classes.

He hadn't fought because Patty still wasn't better. Although his OCD had been lessened by necessity—in the war, he couldn't just stop fighting because he had lost a gun—it still detested to only use Liz in a fight. Without her younger sister, things just weren't right. He needed that symmetry.

He hadn't slept because nightmares plagued his dreams.

Of course they did.

White Star was a constant. He always showed up in seemingly pleasant dreams and then he challenged Kid to the death. In the end, someone always ended up dying. Sometimes, it was White Star, but he simply reanimated and came after Kid once more, a never-ending cycle. More often, it was Kid, not even his Reaper genes saving him as his life blood spread across the ground.

But what scared him most were the deaths of Patty and Liz. Kid could do nothing for his partners, forced to watch as they died in front of him, switching back to their human forms just long enough to watch their eyes.

He hadn't attended classes because he spent every waking moment—and some of his non-waking ones as well—at Patty's bedside, willing the younger girl to wake up. Her wound wasn't too horrible, but the internal damage was extensive. She had been on the receiving end of a particularly nasty Soul Menace.

Kid wasn't even aware that White Star had the ability to use Soul Menace.

Eventually, however, his father had decided that his behavior wasn't healthy—Kid wasn't exactly sure how he came to that conclusion; he was still eating, his clothes were just as symmetrical as always—and had forced him to go to class.

Which made absolutely no sense in Kid's mind. He was a Grim Reaper and had only gone to class in the first place because he wanted to meet his future soldiers and to help his resonance levels with Patty and Liz. He was an elite soldier out in the field. There was no need for him to leave Patty's beside.

But his father had insisted.

So Kid walked through the halls and tried to act cool and confident, the same way that it always was, but it wasn't the same with just Liz behind him.

"Kid!"

He turned slowly, watching as Soul approached him lazily.

"Soul. I heard that you finally found a partner." _Be careful, _his eyes said, _you know how that went before. _

"Yeah, I know. Her name's Maka. Not really a looker, but she's good." _She's different than the others. She might be able to handle it._

"How good?" _No one can handle what you have. _

Soul was just about to retort when a young, blond-haired girl approached them from the side, hitting him in the head with a heavy-bound textbook. Soul dropped to a crouch as he massaged his aching head.

"I heard that."

The girl dropped the book back into her bag. Kid examined her carefully. She had a long black, cape-like jacket and a short plaid skirt. Like Soul had said, she wasn't really a looker, with her plain green eyes and long blond ponytails, but she was pretty enough. Her soul didn't seem particularly strong—not strong enough to handle Soul Menace or his particular brand of Reaper magic—but was unique.

The girl looked up at Kid, as she wordlessly reached a hand down to Soul in order to help him up. "Hi, I'm Maka. You must be one of Soul's friends."

"Yes. My name is Death the Kid, but everyone calls me Kid in order to avoid confusion."

Maka's eyes widened only slightly, the smallest of reactions. "You're Death's son."

"Yes, but I take classes at the DWMA like everyone else. This is Liz, one of my weapons. Patty is unfortunately incapacitated at the time."

Liz smiled slightly. "Ya, she would have loved to have met ya."

Soul took Maka's hand and pulled himself up. "Speaking of Patty, when's she getting out of the hospital? That White Star is not cool at all."

" . . . My little sis should get out tomorrow. It's a bit of a touchy subject right now, Soul."

"It's fine, Liz."

Liz looked at her meister carefully and backed down. "If you say so, Kid."

Maka glanced up at the clock and suddenly jolted. "Oh, we're going to be late!"

"It's cool to be late, Maka!"

Maka grabbed Soul's hand roughly. "Not on your life, Soul," she said as she dragged him roughly down the hallway, Kid and Liz trailing behind.

Kid was surprised at how easily Maka had grabbed onto Soul.

"She's not hurt," Liz said softly.

"It'll happen, Liz, just wait," Kid said with a tone of caution. "It'll happen."

Liz didn't respond.

Kid sat down in his usual seat at the middle of the classroom, exactly two rows to the front and two rows to the back, seven seats on either side. He took pleasure in the exact symmetry for a moment. As people filed into the classroom, Kid saw all the same kids as last year, with only two additions—Maka and Soul.

A lot of students were missing, having been sent out on the raid against White Star, but people were always missing. As the school year went on, more and more of them would disappear, dying in the field or simply . . . not returning.

No new recruits to add to the advanced class this year, it seemed. But of course Maka and Soul had been placed here, if only for the reason of Soul's condition.

Despite nearly everything being the way that it was, it wasn't the same as last year.

Because Patty wasn't in the seat beside him.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

"_You're late." _

"_I'm doing this against my will, I'll have you know."_

"_You're still late." _

"_Fine, fine. I'm coming." _

"_I still don't understand why you're doing this." _

"_Because if I don't get a partner, then Soul will die." _

"_You're not particularly close to Stein's lab assistant." _

" _. . . We've met. He doesn't know much about me, other than the fact that I don't have a partner. We tried to become partners but . . . it just doesn't work out. He can't handle my soul and I can't even touch his." _

"_So you're friends." _

"_I don't understand what you mean by that. Friends . . . I don't think that I can ever have a friend. Not the way that I am." _

"_You could try, you know. Not everyone will hate you for the way that you are. You've done nothing wrong, you're the finest fighter in this war, and you've done nothing but save people . . ." _

"_I can't get close. There's too much at risk to let people know." _

"_You'll have to tell your partner." _

"_I'll find someone who will understand without the questions. I'm a weapon master and an assassin, there's no weapon that unsuited for me. Someone out there will suit me." _

"_Having a partner is not about having someone you can tolerate. It's like having your second half." _

"_Nygus . . ." _

"_Anyway, it doesn't matter, and you're still late to class. I thought that you didn't want to stand out." _

"_Fashionably late, Nygus. Besides, a big man like me can be a little late to class. Flaws are simply natural after all." _

"_Just to let you know, we're letting you go by just your code name in DWMA. That won't raise too much suspicion. Oh, and that Grim Reaper you saved, the one code-named Gold, he's in class with you." _

"_Do the other students know that I'm in the field and get called out on missions a lot?" _

"_Not yet." _

"_They'll find out soon enough. Let's go, Nygus." _

"_Right."_

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

_(Pause) _

_(Rewind) _

_(Play) _

The first time that Maka trained with Soul, nothing happened.

Which surprised him.

She wasn't supposed to be able to handle his soul wavelength. She was supposed to flinch like she had just been burned or reject him in disgust because of his soul. She was not supposed to swing him by the handle around his head, doing complex moves and acting like she didn't feel a thing.

Maybe he was right. Maybe Maka was truly different.

When they broke for the day, Soul told Maka that they would be placed in the advanced class that was usually kept for the second year students. Soul had excuses prepared for when she asked why, but Maka remained silent, like she had expected it.

"That's probably because of Papa," Maka said after a long drink from her water bottle.

"Your dad? Why?"

"Papa's a death scythe, you know. And Mama . . . well, I guess that Mama was important too."

Soul could sense the hesitation in her voice. "What happened to your mom?"

" . . . Nothing. Forget that I ever mentioned it."

"You sure?"

Maka glanced at him. "I'll explain about my mother if you explain how you became Stein's assistant."

" . . . Let's get back to practicing, okay?"

_(Pause) _

_(Fast Forward) _

_(Play)_

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

Now, three days later, Maka sat in the middle of the classroom, right in front of that Grim Reaper who looked oddly happy about something. Maka wondered how long Soul had been in DWMA to know Death's son. She supposed that it didn't matter.

She soon learned that Professor Stein was teaching most of her classes. Every single time that he came into the classroom, Soul would scowl and say "sadistic bastard" under his breath. Maka just chuckled. Soul had told her some of the horror stories and she thought that if she wasn't on such bad terms with her father, she would have probably asked him about those days when he was partners with Stein.

But Maka didn't really see her father. There was very little time when he wasn't in the field, facing off against the Star Clan.

Maka's finger nails dug rivets into her palms just at the thought of them. The Star Clan. The only reason that she was there at DWMA.

Maka forced herself to look at Soul, who was having a glaring vs. sadistic grin match with Professor Stein, who was talking about the glories of dissection.

Soul didn't know about the hell that he had gotten into because he had partnered with her. And it was way too early in the game to enlighten him now.

In the middle of Stein's riveting lecture, the door of their classroom opened.

In it walked a young woman, probably twenty or thirty years of age with dreadlocks and bandages covering most of her face and arms. She had deep eyes and tan skin. She had a badge on her left arm, with three stars beneath a horizontally slanted sword.

A three-star weapon. That was impressive. That was only one rank below a Death Scythe. As students, they didn't even have ranks yet. Well, Kid did, but that was only because he was an agent out in the field and he had a special rank because he was the Grim Reaper's son. He was the only one allowed to carry the codename Gold.

Behind him was a short kid with blue hair. Maka didn't want to describe him so crudely—he wasn't that short. But she definitely had a few inches on him, and that was including the hair. He wore a tight, sleeveless black shirt that showed off his muscles and baggy gray pants tucked into black combat boots. His entire right arm was covered in bandages and black leather straps, all the way up to the shoulder. On his other arm, the bandages only went up to a little past his wrist. The lower half of his face was covered by the high collar of his shirt.

He was probably around her age, maybe a couple of years younger, but he had a blank look on his face that nearly scared her.

The three-star weapon went up to Stein and whispered in his ear. His face darkened for a moment but then he smiled and gestured to the kid. He moved to Stein's side almost grumpily.

"Okay, class. I know that it's already four days into the new semester, but we have a new student. He's been at the DWMA since he was a child but this is his first time taking classes so be nice, ya hear?"

The kid mumbled something that included the words "white-coat wearing freak introducing me."

"Anyway, this is Black, which is his codename out in the field. Since he's an agent, I'm sure that all of you understand why we're not telling you his actual name."

Behind Maka, Liz elbowed Kid in the stomach and whispered harshly, "That's the kid who saved us."

Maka looked up in surprise and examined the new kid more carefully. He didn't seem to have any weapons, but more importantly, he didn't seem to have a _weapon._ Which meant that he didn't have a partner. Or maybe his partner was a solo agent, the way that Soul had been?

Black shrugged and gave the entire class a cocky grin, which seemed to lessen the tense mood in the air. But Maka saw the way that he headed to the back of the classroom and the way that the grin slipped off his face, leaving that darkened expression behind.

He took the seat furthest away from the front and sat down.

It was merely minutes before he promptly fell asleep.

Maka shook her head at the action.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

_Somewhere, deep in the field, an enemy com-link flared to life. _

"_White reporting in. I've got a pesky little recon team breathing down my neck." _

_A smooth female voice responded to him. "Go take it out." _

_A short growl. "Don't order me around, woman. This is a necessary partnership in order to achieve our mutual goals. You're not in charge." _

"_I don't think you understand our situation. You _will _take out the recon team. In any case, we need more blood." _

"_I still don't see how this plan will come to completion. You still haven't retrieved that Grim Reaper and your little experiment." _

"_I'll handle them. They'll come and find me soon enough. In any case, there's a third that I need to finish the circle." _

"_And who would that be?" _

"_It's none of your business, White Star. Like you said, this is merely a business relationship. As well, my other sister is coming in soon. Watch out for her. She would soon decapitate you than look at you." _

"_I thought that you only had two sisters, Medusa." _

"_Two blood sisters. But you know us witches, White Star . . . We're all like . . . family." _


	4. Track Four

**A/N: **Welcome to Track Four! I'm sorry for being gone for so long, but I was gone on vacation. To everyone who reviewed: **DXRough the Avaricious  
**/ **Reesman **/** Sumiku Agaishi **and **werepirechick**. I love every review I get and am really happy that you spent the time to give them. **  
**

The next chapter should be out Tuesday, August 20th.

And without further ado . . . The chapter that you've all been waiting for!

~Shard of Freedom

* * *

_**Track Four: Shift Down (Battlefield Remix) **_

_(Play) _

Black had been in their advanced class for only two hours before the door slammed open and Professor Sid strode in. Stein merely looked up from his cut-open frog for a moment before going back to explaining the glories of dissection.

Maka watched as Black immediately got from sleeping and wordlessly followed Sid out of the classroom.

As soon as the doors closed behind the two of them, the whispering began. Maka didn't know what it was about, and Professor Stein just kept going on about how nothing would ever be better than the mutilation of small animals, so she just turned back to the book that she had been subtly reading all through the lesson.

After all, it wasn't like she really needed to know how to dissect a frog.

There was a tap on her shoulder.

"Yeah, Soul?"

"You want to practice again tonight? It'd be pretty cool if we were prepared when we finally start going out on field missions. Besides . . . I want to show you something."

" . . . Sure. I think that I have something to share with you in any case. After all, were not partners unless we learn about each other, right?" Maka tried not to look at Soul as she spoke.

Soul gave a short, awkward laugh. "Yeah, I'm sure that you're right."

Class ended shortly after that. Maka walked next to Soul, her shoulders brushing with his every few minutes. Kid and Liz walked slightly in front of the two of them, but the conversation between the two pairs wasn't awkward.

"Hey, why do you think Black left?" Liz asked randomly as silence stretched.

To everyone's surprise, it was Soul who answered. "He's a field agent. He probably got called out on a mission. When things get serious, they usually call in Black."

"You know him, Soul?" Maka asked.

"We've met once or twice. He tried to be partners with me a few years back, but it didn't work out. I could handle his soul wavelength and he couldn't channel mine."

Kid sent Soul a meaningful look, but Soul ignored him.

"So who is Black, Soul?" Kid asked with one more serious look.

Soul shrugged. "I don't know. I don't think anyone does. He's always gone by the codename Black. Apparently, he's always called in on any mission where a witch or White Star appears."

Kid jumped. "White Star has been spotted?"

"Most likely. Black hangs out in DWMA when he's not on missions. The only personal information that I got out of him is that he's Sid's son and trained to be an assassin."

Kid placed a hand to his chin. "I have to talk to my father."

"I doubt it will help. Black's like a one man covert ops team. Everything on him is more classified than Death's birth date."

Liz sighed. "Well, I suppose that he's in class with us now, so I can thank him for saving our lives later."

Kid looked back over his shoulder, where Black had disappeared from only minutes earlier.

"Yeah, I guess we can."

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

"_What's going on, Sid?" _

"_White Star's been spotted." _

"_What? But he never shows up again so quickly. His last attack was only four days ago!" _

"_It doesn't matter. He's there and he's closing in fast. Even the battle team won't be able to handle it." _

"_I'm on it." _

"_Oh, and Black, there's someone that I want you to watch out for. There's a girl with them—she's a weapon. A member of the Nakatsukasa clan." _

"_Is she special?" _

"_She's the only shadow weapon that we have at DWMA, and the witches want her desperately. She's the only known Uncanny Sword in existence." _

"_So is this a rescue mission or a backup mission?" _

"_Do both, but getting the Nakatsukasa girl out alive is the main priority. Death says that the witches can't be allowed to get their hands on her." _

"_Gotcha." _

"_And no matter what, try not to engage White Star in direct combat. Out of everyone on that team, we can't lose you the most." _

"_No promises." _

"_Black!" _

"_Don't worry, Sid. I know what White Star is capable of far better than anyone else." _

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

Most people would never understand what it would be like to be a weapon. It was an exhilarating feeling, to know that you could transform into such a deadly blade, but it was also terrifying, knowing that you had to trust everything to someone else, even your movement.

That was why there had to be complete and utter unity between partners, between meister and weapon.

And as Tsubaki sat inside her mindscape in weapon form, watching the battle with glazed eyes, she knew that she and Will didn't have that.

Tsubaki didn't have the ability to resonate with Will. Most of her ability to resonate came in her ability to change forms quickly. All true Soul Resonance took place in only one of Tsubaki's forms—her Uncanny Sword.

Which Will wouldn't touch.

Tsubaki always watched when her partners battled. She would sit silently inside of her mindscape. Back when she had first partnered with Will, she would give him advice, seeing as she was the more experienced of the two, but Will never listened and rarely took it.

They were in a clearing in the trees. Most of the battles took place in this forest, a sort of natural barrier between the Star Clan and the DWMA. A while back, near the beginning of the war, witches had claimed the forest as neutral territory, but both sides still fought fiercely through the trees.

Although, as the Silver pair, she and Will were technically backup, they had arrived before the enemy, defeating the purpose of being backup. They had remained silent in the trees as they waited for the enemy to show themselves.

"Ninja Sword mode."

Will's command had been short and brief, but Tsubaki had obeyed it without question.

Only seconds later, the enemy had burst from the other side of the trees in the clearing, undefined blurs as they moved.

After that, Tsubaki had retreated into the mindscape of her weapon form, watching the world around her with soft eyes and turning away when she watched people that she knew died. Will didn't speak with her and used her as a normal weapon. Didn't he understand that she was different from the other weapons at the DWMA? She was a Shadow Weapon. She was made to shift.

Tsubaki got goose bumps down her arms when Will used her blade to block an attack from a man with shockingly white hair. His eyes—there was something wrong with his eyes.

"So, you're the one."

Tsubaki couldn't see the man clearly, with the black scarf covering the lower half of his face, but she knew that he was speaking directly to her. She shivered as she wrapped her arms around her naked self within the mindscape.

"The Uncanny Sword."

Tsubaki's eyes widened. _The enemy knew about the Uncanny Sword. _

Will moved the ninja sword and her vision was suddenly blocked. Tsubaki was about to turn around and ask him to move, the man knew something about her, maybe something about her brother, but she bit her tongue when she saw the look on Will's face.

"You won't touch her."

Tsubaki blinked.

Their enemy sneered. "And who do you think you are to stop me, little boy? I am White Star, leader of the Star Clan and deadliest assassin known to man."

Tsubaki suddenly rose to the edge of her mindscape, so that her image was reflected on the blade.

"Will, we have to get out of here! White Star is a Code Four! Flee on sight!"

Will flipped her once more, tightening his guard. "We don't have an option anymore."

Tsubaki glanced at White Star, who was holding an average looking dagger in one hand while the other was crackling yellow with his own Soul Wavelength.

"Will, he knows Soul Menace! I can't protect you from something like that! We have to get out!"

Will flipped backwards as he narrowly dodged a blow from White Star.

"Like I said, Tsubaki, I don't think we have the option anymore."

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

Liz watched Kid out of the corner of her eye.

They were in Death's mansion, the place that the three of them had called home for the longest of times. Everything seemed to be black, white or red within the mansion, something that had always bothered Liz. That was why she had insisted that she and Patty get to wear the pink and blue cowboy-reminiscent outfits.

Kid was staring at the candles on the table, probably making sure that they were exactly symmetrical.

Kid . . . hadn't been the same since their fight against White Star and Patty's injuries.

Kid had just turned eighteen. He wasn't supposed to be handling all these problems. Patty had just turned fifteen. She was too young to be so heavily injured.

Liz was nearing her nineteenth birthday. She had always been the oldest of the three of them, although Liz had never been sure how fast Kid aged, although she had always seem him age like a normal meister. Kid usually took the lead in their missions as their meister and the one who kept the two of them focused.

Liz wanted to make sure that Kid was alright.

Although it seemed odd to some of the other meisters, the relationship that Liz and Patty had with Kid had always been platonic. If one of them had pursued Kid, then their resonance would be unbalanced and it would ruin whatever fighting skill that they had. Liz had always looked at Kid with admiration and respect and had watched him with devoted eyes. Patty had seen him as a rock, the same way that her big sister Liz was.

But things had changed.

Liz knew that Kid had better things to worry about than her. Patty was always more important.

When the three of them had first became partners, Liz had walked up to Kid and told him that if anything, _anything_, happened to Patty, it would be on his head. Kid had always accepted that. And even though Patty had been injured, the three of them had been partners long enough to understand that even though Patty was injured, Liz didn't feel that need to take out retribution. No, she trusted Kid more than that.

But with Kid so worried about Patty, Liz couldn't help but feel a little bit slighted.

It's as if she wasn't even there anymore.

It was stupid, she knew. Patty was hurt, of course Kid would care more about her now. It was only appropriate, and Liz should care more about her little sister who was recovering steadily.

But she felt like it had thrown off their balance. Kid was now solely focused on Patty and getting her better. And Liz knew that when Patty was back in commission, Kid would take more time protecting her, making sure that she didn't get hurt.

Liz felt like the odd woman out, like she was separate from the rest of the group. She felt like an outcast, like she had on the streets of the big city.

But Liz looked back at Kid, who was cutting the candle at perfect ninety-degree angles, making triangles and smiled softly.

She was probably imagining things.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

"WILL!"

Tsubaki morphed out of her weapon form and leaned down next to her meister, who was bleeding out on the ground.

The fight had lasted less than a minute. Tsubaki knew that Will wasn't strong enough to handle the fight with White Star, especially with her and their incomplete resonance, all through the fight she had tried to convince him to run, to get away from him or at least call for backup. Will hadn't heeded her advice.

She dropped to her knees next to him and tried to stop the flow of blood with her hands.

"Come on, come on, you can do this, it's not the bad, I can handle this, it's going to be fine, Will, I promise you it's going to be fine, I'll call the backup squad and we can handle this, we can handle this, you'll make it through, I promise, I can help you, y-y-you'll b-be okay . . . y-you'll be fine."

As she spoke, tears suddenly flowed down her cheeks and her shoulders shook with sobs. The blood came in waves across her hands and died them red, spilling onto the ground and onto her tight black clothes. Will''s blue eyes were cloudy and unfocused as blood dripped out of his mouth.

"It'll be fine, it'll be fine, it'll be fine . . ." Tsubaki chanted as a mantra as she pressed harder and harder against the wound, only to have more blood spill out from between her fingers.

Footsteps crunched in front of her. As an instinct, Tsubaki pushed herself in between Will and the approaching figure, stretching her bloodied arms out.

White Star had stark white hair and wore a black outfit with a high collar. It had no sleeves and the star tattoo on his shoulder shone clearly in the sunlight.

"Don't come any closer!" Tsubaki shrieked. "You won't touch him!"

White Star glanced down at her, and she got a clear view of his pupils, which had been turned into green stars. Tsubaki shivered but stood firm.

"STAY BACK!" She screeched, her voice increasing in volume.

White Star crouched down so that his odd eyes were staring directly into her sad brown ones. Tsubaki moved back a bit, her knees running into the pool of Will's blood.

"I would like to know," White Star said softly, his voice oddly calm as he glanced between Tsubaki and her injured partner, "why you would protect him when he obviously doesn't care for you."

Tsubaki's blood ran cold at the sound of his voice. "W-what?"

"Why do you protect him when he would not protect you?"

"Because he's my partner," Tsubaki retorted softly. "Because I still have allegiance towards him and I won't go back on my word! I'm a weapon; I'm supposed to follow my meister!"

White Star flipped his dagger into a backhand as he watched her frightened eyes. "You're brave. I can respect that."

Tsubaki looked at him oddly.

"But that doesn't mean that I'm going to spare you."

Tsubaki felt a knife against her skin.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

_Static. _

"_Black, can you hear me?" _

"_Loud and clear. What's up?" _

"_You have to hurry. Apparently, the Nakatsukasa girl's meister went down. You have to get there quickly. I honestly don't care how you do it." _

" _. . . Sid, are you giving me permission?" _

"_If there was any time to use them, Black, it would be now. Just be careful who you use them in front of." _

" _. . . Thanks, Sid." _

"_Just save her, okay?" _

"_Gotcha." _

_More static. _

_A deep breath. _

_A ninja seal was made in front of closed eyes. _

"_Soul Resonance._

"_Speed Star."_

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

Tsubaki thought that she was going to die.

But as soon as she felt the steel on her neck, it was suddenly gone.

Tsubaki looked up to see a figure standing between White Star and herself, just in the way that she had pushed herself between White Star and Will. It was a man—or perhaps a boy?—who probably about six inches shorter than herself, holding his muscled and bandaged arms in front of his body in a loose guard. The boy shifted so that Tsubaki was nearly completely out of sight of White Star.

White Star scowled. "You're the one from the other day."

The spiky blue-haired figure in front of her tilted his head and shrugged.

White Star crouched down and readied his guard. "You're always getting in my way. You've interfered with my plans for the last time. Who the hell are you?"

The boy looked back at Tsubaki and she caught a glimpse of his green eyes that were swimming with the emotions that came from battle—bravery, confidence, security, fatigue, but there was compassion there to, directed towards Tsubaki and her plight. When he answered, the boy answered directly to Tsubaki.

"I'm Black, DWMA Covert Ops."

White Star snarled. "DWMA has a Covert Ops Unit?"

Black pulled out a ninja sword from under his sleeve and flipped it into a backhand, slipping the weapon into his guard. "Nope. They have me."

Before White Star could react, Black threw down some pellets that spread gas across the area. Tsubaki couldn't see and stifled her cough, not willing to allow two assassins to know where she was. When arms slid across her back and underneath her knees, she almost screamed in terror.

"Don't worry. It's Black. We have to get out of here."

"But Will!"

"It's too late for him; he's dead. My mission is to get you, and just you, out of here alive. Be quiet. I have to get out of here silently."

Suddenly, through the layers of white gas, a shuriken just barely missed Black's ear, if he had not moved.

"Shit!" Black cursed.

Running at breakneck speeds, with Tsubaki in his arms, he tried to find his way out of the gas, all the while dodging shuriken thrown by White Star who was no doubt following them.

Black looked down at Tsubaki, who had silent tears following down her cheeks but looked up at him with brave eyes. He seemed to contemplate a decision for a moment, and was about to say something when White Star shot out of the darkness and Black narrowly missed a fatal blow.

White Star straightened. "I'll give you this, kid: You're good."

Black didn't respond. Instead, he looked down at Tsubaki quickly. "You're a weapon, right?"

Tsubaki, unable of speech, simply nodded.

"Transform into whatever form you have the most resonance capabilities with."

"But—"

"DO IT! And whatever happens afterword, don't mention this to anyone."

Tsubaki bit her lip, but she didn't argue as she flipped up into the air and transformed into her ninja sword mode. For a moment she considered transforming into the Uncanny Sword, but she wanted to survive, not kill her savior.

"Now, resonate your soul with mine. It's going to be awkward and uncomfortable, but we need to get out of here and fast!"

"Alright!"

"SOUL RESONANCE!" Tsubaki and Black screamed together.

Black was right, it was awkward. And moreover, it _hurt_. The two of them weren't in sync, didn't know each other at all to achieve unified soul resonance, and Tsubaki had the feeling that Black didn't have the ability to see souls like most meisters could.

Black mumbled something that Tsubaki couldn't hear, and they were flying through the forest, racing away from White Star.

It was faster than Tsubaki had expected, certainly faster than Black's normal speed. Tsubaki steeled herself against the pain of their soul resonance and worked to keep the two of them together. Even with the wind around her, Tsubaki could still hear White Star's voice.

"Excellent! So you know advanced speed resonance training! You'll be fun to kill!"

_Advanced speed resonance? _Tsubaki thought.

"DWMA certainly has trained you well! I wonder, what else do you know?"

Black kept running. "Shit, he's gaining." He glanced down at the ninja sword that he held in his hand. Tsubaki raised herself to the edge of the mindscape, so that her face was reflected on the blade. "Do you have any form with higher resonance?"

"T-the Uncanny Sword. But it'll drain your wavelength instantly."

"An instant is all I need."

Tsubaki bit her lip but she immediately began to change forms, becoming the Uncanny Sword awkwardly while trying to maintain their resonance. Black gripped the Uncanny Sword tightly as he raised a hand in front of himself as he speed through the forest, making a ninja seal.

"What's your name?" Black asked randomly.

Tsubaki, reflected in the Uncanny Sword, looked at him with wide eyes. "Tsubaki Nakatsukasa."

"Well, Tsubaki, we're going to need to resonate one more time. Hold on for me."

"Of course!" she said immediately.

"SOUL RESONANCE!"

Black's face suddenly became consumed by the black lines that spread from the Uncanny Sword. Tsubaki looked at Black worriedly for a moment. Black winced once before returning to their pace, watching at Black's blue soul spread out around them, now covered in the black markings of the Uncanny Sword.

Once more, Black murmured something softly under his breath before speeding off at an even brisker pace, and Tsubaki watched in awe as White Star disappeared behind them.

Soon, however, the Uncanny Sword became too much for Black and he dropped to his knees, clutching his head. Tsubaki immediately returned to human form, resting her hands on his shoulders.

As soon as she touched him, his eyes opened and he flinched violently. Tsubaki quickly removed her hands.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean any disrespect!"

Black took a deep breath before he looked over at Tsubaki and gave her a slight smile. "No worries. I think that we lost him," Black said as he scanned the trees.

Tsubaki nodded and glanced back the direction that they came with a sorrowful expression. _Will _. . .

Black looked over at her carefully and didn't say a word. All he did was tap her on the shoulder.

Tsubaki flipped back and turned into her chain scythe mode, allowing Black to carry her back to the doors of DWMA, where she finally felt safe.

* * *

UoUoUoUoU

* * *

"_I messed up." _

"_What did you do this time?" _

"_That girl. Tsubaki. I had to use some of my techniques in front of her." _

" _. . . Maybe that's not such a bad thing. She could be the one that you're looking for—the one who could be a partner to you." _

" _. . . She just lost her meister, Sid. She's not going to jump and get a new one." _

"_You might be surprised." _

"_I'm not even going to go into that issue." Pause. "We have a bigger issue here." _

"_What?" _

"_White Star saw me use them too." _

" _. . . Is he suspicious?" _

"_Not yet. But if I come into battle with him more often, there won't be any hiding it." _

"_And then what happens? Have you ever thought that it wouldn't be so bad?" _

"_One person knows, they all know. And while some may forgive, others won't. That's just the way that things are. And besides . . . I don't want them to have any sort of claim to me." _

"_Black . . ." _

"_I'm not connected to them at all. I'm separate." _

_Footsteps echoed through the hallways of DWMA. _

"_Oh, Black Star, you'll always be more connected to them that you could ever know." _


	5. Track Negative One

**A/N: **I'm sorry that this is so late. But my computer crashed, so I lost this and the other chapters of my other fanfiction, meaning that I had to rewrite all of them. It was harder than writing them the first time. But any way, here's our first extended flashback into the pasts of our characters.

To my reviewers: **dawnfire7** / **Imafangirlsowhat **/ **werepirechick **/ **DXRough****. **Thanks for all of your support!

Warnings: This chapter is a lot darker than I meant to be when I first thought it out.

Read, Review and Enjoy!

~Shard of Freedom

* * *

___(STOP)__  
_

_(Skip – REWIND) _

_**Track Negative One: Camellia's Sorrow **_

_(Play) _

Tsubaki walked across the stepping stones, careful not the touch the grass with her feet, which were covered in traditional Japanese sandals. Her kimono was hiked up around her knees, and her mother would have yelled at her to see her in such a state.

But she was eight, and at eight, Tsubaki was invincible.

"Tsubaki!"

Tsubaki whirled around to the source of the voice.

"Nii-san!"

Masamune held out his arms to Tsubaki. She ran across the grass to her big brother, forgetting all about the game that she was playing. Masamune recoiled a bit from the force of Tsubaki's blow.

"Hey, there. You're getting stronger. What do you say? How about we go and work on your weapon abilities later, 'kay?"

Tsubaki looked up at her brother with nervous eyes.

"Hey, my little flower, what's wrong?"

Tsubaki shifted awkwardly from foot to foot. "Mother says that you could be . . . jealz-jelo-"

"Jealous?"

"Yeah! She said that you could be jealous of the fact that I inherited all of the weapon forms and you didn't."

Masamune shook his head. "Don't ever think that, Tsubaki. We're brother and sister. We have to stick together. You got the weapon forms while I obtained the ability to become a katana. We're both weapon, so why does there need to be any reason for us to fight?"

Tsubaki cocked her head.

"No, I'm not jealous. Sometimes I wish that I had gotten them, but they've given you a great opportunity."

Suddenly, there was a loud explosion from behind them. Orders were shouted from the uppermost walls that surrounded the Nakatsukasa estate. Masamuse wrapped his arms around Tsubaki, protecting her from the debris that spread around them.

There was a shout from the upper walls.

"We've come for the shadow weapons!"

The cry came from a woman who wore a black loose suit with a hood. She seemed to be sitting on an arrow that protruded from her lower back. She had speckled tattooed snakes on her arms.

"IT'S THE STAR CLAN!" The shout of Tsubaki's father echoed across the estate as he grabbed the halberd that he used in battle. "PREPARE MY TROOPS!"

Masamune immediately gathered his little sister up into his arms and ran through the walls of the estate, eventually leading her down into the basement levels. They could hear the sounds of fighting outside, the clash of steel on steel. Tsubaki winced every time she heard the anguished screams of those who died.

Masamune rubbed her head. "Hey, don't worry. It'll be okay."

Tsubaki wiped at her eyes. "Promise?"

"Of course."

" . . . That woman. She said that she came for the shadow weapons. Does that mean that she came for me? Did she break into our home . . . for me?"

Masamune looked hesitant to respond for a moment. He looked up at the ceiling, the floorboards that were their only protection from the fighting up above them.

"Let's just say that I've never been jealous of your shadow weapon abilities, okay?"

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

Before the war, the Nakatsukasa Clan used to be trade partners with the Star Clan. They were close with the assassins. With the many clans spread throughout the country, there was always need to be close with some . . . unsavory types, just to make sure that your back wasn't stabbed in your sleep.

But then the war had begun.

The Nakatsukasa Clan had been close with both the Star Clan and DWMA before the war, for separate reasons. Both the Academy and the host of assassins could provide protection in different circles and before the fighting broke out, it only seemed prudent to be allied with both of them. But as soon as the war had started, the clan was forced to make a choice.

Hesitant but resilient in their answer, the Nakatsukasa Clan turned their back on the Star Clan and firmly joined forces with DWMA.

But the clan was determined to force their realignment, make sure that everyone knew.

Without any options, they always made sure that they had one of the Nakatsukasa members in the DWMA battle forces.

Masamune was the first to leave, when Tsubaki was only ten, heading to the front lines. Tsubaki missed her older brother terribly when he was gone. She sent letters to him every week, praying that he was still alive and that he could respond to her messages.

Although Tsubaki loved her brother more than anything else in the world, the same couldn't be said for the rest of the clan. Masamune had always been a bit of a black sheep, determined to protect Tsubaki at the risk on angering the clan elders, one of the only Nakatsukasa members that didn't have changeable forms. Even Aki, one of the young, distant branch cousins, had the ability to switch between daggers and long blades, even if they weren't as advanced as Tsubaki's five different types.

So, three years after Masamune had gone off to war, when Tsubaki was thirteen, she felt that she and her father were the only ones who mourned.

Her brother went missing in the middle of a raid.

After two months on light searching—the clan never did try very hard when it came to Masamune—he was declared dead, presumably taken by the Star Clan.

It took years for Tsubaki to get over his death.

But in the middle of her mourning, the clan decided that it would be wise to reach out to DWMA and relieve the suspicions once more.

So, Tsubaki, at the age of fourteen, was shipped off to DWMA, leaving the only life that she had ever known behind.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

Two years later, Tsubaki was pulled into Death's Mirror Room.

She was one of the oddest students that DWMA had ever seen. Tsubaki was kind, and docile, and tolerant and endearing. She certainly could have been anyone's partner, and she got a lot of offers from other students. But she declined each one of them. Even her assigned partners from the head honchos at DWMA never lasted long.

When asked why they had terminated the attempted partnership only hours after they had been assigned, the answer would always be the same.

"She just asked me to."

The simple fact that was Tsubaki didn't want to be there.

So, when she was pulled into Death's Mirror Room in the middle of class, Tsubaki really wasn't that surprised. Tsubaki wasn't usually put into the same league as trouble-makers, but she supposed that in her own silent way, she was one. She was being "difficult" even if she didn't do anything more than say a few well-chosen words.

Death was waiting for her, standing in front of the mirror.

"Yo, Tsubaki."

Tsubaki gave a small bow, uncomfortable with his casual way of speaking. "Lord Death. I heard that you had called for me."

"You look nervous, Tsubaki. Don't be so uptight; you're not in any trouble." Death wobbled to the side. "However, I do have bad news."

Tsubaki's blood went cold. Bad news, in these times, was never a good thing. It most likely had something to do with the war—and Tsubaki somehow.

"Your brother's been found."

" . . . Nii-san?" Tsubaki asked softly, barely daring herself to hope. "After three years . . . he's alive?"

Death nodded, any facial expression hidden by his mask.

Tsubaki paused. "Wait . . . how is that bad news?"

"He's not the same Masamune that you once knew. He's changed, and not in a good way. We fear that he's given into insanity. How or why is unknown, but he has obtained the ability to use the Uncanny Sword."

_The legend . . . _All of the Nakatsukasa clan members knew of the stories of the Uncanny Sword. It was the power and burden given only to those . . . who had fallen.

"You . . . this has to be a joke!" Tsubaki said softly, urgently. "There's no way that Masamune would fall. He's always been the strong one, he's always been the one who protected me!"

"He may not have had a choice."

Tsubaki froze.

"Although you may not see it this way, I'm not asking you to hurt your brother. I'm asking you to save him."

Tsubaki clenched her teeth then relaxed. "Why me?" she asked, docile.

"Because I didn't want someone else to take him away from you."

"If what you're saying is true, he was taken away from me a long time ago."

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

Kim was a good meister. They weren't exactly compatible, persay, but Tsubaki thought that they would work well together. When they walked through the Village of Needles together, Kim tried to make small talk with her brash, slightly rude way.

Tsubaki was grim. She didn't respond when Kim asked about her.

Halfway through the muddied road that led up to some sort of homage to a god—an oddly shaped statue with an orange and yellow circle of top—Kim suddenly stopped and reached a hand out to Tsubaki. Tsubaki flipped into her chain-scythe mode, the one that Kim was most comfortable with.

When Tsubaki had told Death that she had agreed to his plan, the shinigami had immediately gotten her an experienced meister, a one-star meister named Kim. She was sweet in a rough way. They were given indefinite time to train, but it ended up being only around two weeks.

But they weren't right. And even though Tsubaki knew that they weren't completely compatible, it was necessary. She wouldn't give up this chance to finally have closure concerning her brother.

Unsteadily turning the corner came a man dressed in a white cloak, leaning heavily against the wall and tripping over his own feet. His pointed rice hat toppled to the ground as he came closer to the two girls, revealing long, matted black hair tied back in a ponytail and bloodshot eyes. His skin was shallow and the circles under his eyes were a deep purple.

"Nii-san," Tsubaki said as she looked at the man. She reached out within her mindscape. "NII-SAN!"

Masamune turned at the sound of Tsubaki's cry. Kim slid into a battle stance.

Suddenly, a pure black katana appeared in Masamune's hands. It cracked with sparks of dark energy. He ran towards Kim.

"Tsubaki! Resonate!"

"Right!"

Their resonance allowed Tsubaki to remain relatively unharmed from the painful shocks of energy that was being exuded by the blade but Tsubaki watched as shallow cuts appeared on her pale naked arms within the mindscape. There had been power behind that attack.

"Nii-san! It's me! It's Tsubaki!"

Masamune continued his brutal assault.

Kim quickly dodged out of the way of an incoming attack.

"Tsubaki, focus!"

"But my brother—"

"Focus!"

Tsubaki brought herself to the edge of the mindscape and nodded, knowing that Kim could see her.

Masamune reached out with his pale hand and a dark, lanky shadow shot out from the ground and nicked Kim across the cheek. The witch raised a hand to her cut and healed it instantly, scowling fiercely.

"Lucky bastard."

But Kim was more cautious in battle from that moment onward.

Masamune fought soullessly. His eyes constantly moved around and his head was tilted at an odd angle. His pupils were dilated and his pale hands wrapped around the black katana were shaking. His unsteady movements created a unique a deadly fighting style.

"It's me! It's Tsubaki! Please recognize me, Masamune! MASAMUNE, PLEASE!"

Masamune faltered, his cloudy eyes clearing for a second as he looked around, wondering . . . "Tsubaki?"

Kim kicked Masamune cleanly in the solar plexus. She threw Tsubaki up in the air and Tsubaki immediately turned into her human form. She opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by Kim's words.

"Now's your chance! GO!"

Tsubaki wanted to argue, but instead she darted over to Masamune and placed her hands on either side of his head as he lay on the ground.

Taking a deep breath, she slipped into his mindscape.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

The first thing that she noticed was the water. It was a sickly purple. The moon in the sky had wide, bloodshot eyes and blood trickled out of its cut mouth. There were once trees in this mindscape, Tsubaki knew, but instead there were broken and shattered twigs that floated on the top of the water along with camellia blossoms that had been crushed underfoot.

As the mindscape lay out before her, Tsubaki recognized immediately when Masamune joined it. He was standing like Tsubaki, but while Tsubaki's footsteps floated on top of the water, he was knee-deep in the poisonous-looking liquid, with purple ropes reaching up around his shoulders and dragging him further down.

But this figure looked more like the one that Tsubaki had known—soft eyes, healthy skin, brushed and tamed hair.

His cool black eyes found Tsubaki's. "Hello, Tsubaki. You've grown up well."

Tsubaki darted over towards him and she dropped to her knees in front of his so that they were about the same height. "Nii-san!"

Tsubaki began tugging at Masamune's legs, but her fingers refused to touch the water. The surface was like steel.

"It's alright, Tsubaki. I've been fading for a long time."

"But, nii-san—"

Masamune placed a hand on her shoulder. "It's fine. I've accepted it. I've been watching my mind and body deteriorate from within my mindscape for years. I'm glad that you found the real me within all of the sickness."

Tears blurred Tsubaki's vision. "I just found you! Don't leave me again!"

"It's fine. But I need you to do something for me. I didn't go missing."

Tsubaki blinked through her tears.

"I was taken. I'm not sure who kidnapped me, or for what purpose, but there were many of us. Some had been there for even longer than me. We were all to be sacrifices. I'm not sure what it was for. They kept us in the dark. What I do know is that there was a witch."

"What? How did you escape?"

"There were two of them. A boy and a girl. They had been there for the longest. Two years ago, they escaped from the lab. No one really knew them that well, but they were informed. We called them the Enlightened. They knew exactly what was happening to us and for what purpose. They were both the wardens and our confidents. The two of them were stronger than the rest of us and they made sure that we stayed in line. They were protecting us.

"A year ago, the boy came back. He brought an army. He enabled the rest of us to escape. But it wasn't the glorious reunion that we had imagined. Most of us had been so damaged from the experiments that we couldn't interact with other people. Like myself, we descended into madness."

"Nii-san . . ." Tsubaki said as tears fell freely.

"They gave me a gift, those horrible people. The Uncanny Sword. They're going to want it back. And as soon as they find my body, they'll have it back." The purple ropes dragged him further down, so that the water was waist-high. "I need you to take the Uncanny Sword."

"But that would mean . . ."

"Yes, I need you to kill me."

"I can't!"

"Tsubaki," Masamune said calmly, his eyes sad. "'Baki, I need you to. For me. I won't be able to rest unless it's gone. I will give you my only strength, the one power that I obtained through sheer endurance, so that you can succeed where I have failed."

"Nii-san . . ."

"Please."

Tsubaki summoned the ninja sword into her hands as her tears floated on the surface of the purple liquid, like oil on water.

"Forgive me, nii-san."

"There's nothing that needs to be forgiven."

Tsubaki let out a strangled sob.

When Tsubaki ran the blade home, she was the one who screamed.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

"Tsubaki? Tsubaki, can you hear me?"

Groggily, Tsubaki opened her eyes.

"Excellent, you're awake."

"We were so worried about you, ya know!"

She turned her head to see that Professor Stein and Lord Death were standing next to her bed. Why was she in a bed? Tsubaki tried to get up, but the throbbing in her head made her lay back down.

"Now, now," Professor Stein said. "You've just obtained a new weapon form. Your body's going to need a few more days to recover."

"Nii-san?"

The professor blew out a length of smoke. "We gave him a proper burial. We waited for you to wake up in order to have a funeral. Your parents have already been informed of his passing. One of your aunts sent a get-well-soon card. It also mentions your brother."

_Probably as an afterthought, _Tsubaki thought bitterly.

Lord Death sighed. "I heard about the fact that your brother gave you the Uncanny Sword. He made a wise decision, making sure that the Sword was placed within good hands."

"But you need to rest before anything else. About your brother, your father wishes to speak with you. However, I have placed you under bed rest for the next three days. You can recuperate in peace then."

Tsubaki felt her eyes get wet. "Thank you, Professor Stein," she choked out. She didn't know why it affected her so much. But the act of kindness that the professor had given her in her time of need touched Tsubaki deeply. She needed that time alone, and Stein was kind enough to give it to her.

Lord Death pushed something towards her. "One of our covert ops agents found this at the sight of the battle. He wanted it to be returned to you."

It was Masamune's hat.

The one that he had worn when they were children.

When he was teaching her how to transform.

When he was lecturing her.

When she had seen him for the last time.

Tsubaki grabbed it with careful hands.

"How long have I been out?" Tsubaki took a long time to form the words. She didn't want to speak. She wanted to curl up into a ball and pretend that everything hadn't happened.

"Three days," Stein provided.

Silence echoed through the room. Eventually, Stein touched Lord Death's shoulder and he rolled out of the room, followed closely by the shinigami, leaving Tsubaki alone to allow the tear to fall.

As Tsubaki clutched the hat, her shoulders shaking, she realized that today was her seventeenth birthday.

"Happy birthday," Tsubaki murmured as she crushed the hat so tight that she heard something splinter.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

A lump of flash wiggled across the floor, only to reach one bloodied and contorted hand out. It moved for a couple of seconds only the fall down suddenly to the floor.

A woman made a note. "Another failure."

She picked up a syringe with a black substance. A few drops fell out of the needle and onto the table. They melted all the way through, only to drop down and start dissolving the floor as well.

She moved to another experiment, this one a young girl with red hair.

"Oh well." She knelt down next to the cage, pulling back the needle surgically. "Now, let's begin."


	6. Track Five

**A/N: **Hi!It's been a while, but hopefully you guys haven't given up on me yet. This chapter returns to the regular timeline, after Will's death and Black saves her. The reception that I got on the last chapter was great! Thank you all, but especially my reviewers: **waytheballbounces **/ **werepirechick **/ **dawnfire7** / **kyia12 **/ **anniewanny2 **and **charmedprincess101**

Read, Review and Enjoy!

~Shard of Freedom

* * *

_**Track Five: Revive and Return (Ft. Camellia Blossom) **_

_(Play) _

It was odd to be back in DWMA.

Tsubaki was in limbo now. Although she had been through many partners over the years, this had been the first time when her partner had actually died. DWMA didn't want to be so insensitive as to just give her another partner and send her back in the field, but she couldn't just stay idle either.

So Tsubaki returned to the classes that she hadn't taken in two years.

She supposed the DWMA would be the perfect place to find a partner that suited her.

But when she thought of partners, her mind automatically went back to Will. He had never treated her like an equal, he had never liked her as more than a weapon, and saw her as a hindrance more than a help. Although he had had a moment of kindness, when he swore that he was going to protect her from White Star, it amounted to nothing, and it didn't make up for the six months of silent suffering that she had gone through being his partner.

Even when she stood in front of Will's grave—apparently, Black had returned after the battle to retrieve the bodies of those who had fallen—she couldn't muster up that feeling of sorrow and guilt that she was expected to have.

People gave her their condolences, told her about what a great partner Will had been, and that they truly felt for her loss, sad that she had to see her partner die.

Tsubaki didn't know what to say. What were you supposed to say when the one who died wasn't nearly as good as people immortalized him to be?

Tsubaki wanted to shout to the heavens that Will was a horrible partner, that he never treated her like she deserved, that he was just as bad as all the others who had come before. But she didn't want to sound insensitive. Although he had never treated her properly, Tsubaki did know that he had had friends who had cared for him, although she had never met them.

How do you show respect for the dead when they never respected you in life?

Tsubaki felt like a stranger standing in front of the grave. She didn't belong there, and it was almost rude that she was. Tsubaki had never liked Will, as a partner or as a person. She didn't like how he had controlled her life, didn't like how he never saw her as an equal.

Out of appearances, not respect for Will, she wore the tight black suit that she had worn as his partner to the funeral, kept her hair short and in a high ponytail, the way that he wanted her to wear it.

But when she got to DWMA, she let her hair down and decided to grow it out.

She would have the long hair that she had always wanted when she was a child. She immediately traded the tight bodysuit that she had worn for so long for a modest tank top and skinny jeans. She was in classes, not out on the battlefield. But despite the way that she looked, the way that she had changed, people still came up to Tsubaki and told her how they were sorry, and hoped that her grief would stop soon.

Tsubaki didn't tell them that her grief had never started.

The only person who seemed to understand was Liz.

Liz and Tsubaki had been friends for a long time, one of the only people who understood them. Liz had taken classes the year that Tsubaki had joined DWMA, and they had become close friends. Tsubaki didn't really understand Patty, and Kid was always pretty cold towards her, but Liz and Tsubaki had always gotten along. Liz knew about Tsubaki's detachment from Will and how much she hated him. So when Liz saw her for the first time after the funeral, haunting the halls of DWMA, Liz just looked at her and shrugged, asking softly, "How bad was it?"

And like a dam, Tsubaki burst with all the feelings that she had been keeping locked inside.

It had been a week since Tsubaki had returned.

She felt lighter than she had in years, and she felt like she shouldn't.

As Tsubaki wandered into the advanced class with the rest of the students, she took her seat to the left of Liz like always.

As the door swung shut, and no one else entered into the room, she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

Liz had told her that Black was in this class.

So far, she hadn't seen him.

Liz wondered why Tsubaki was so obsessed with finding him, and accused Tsubaki on having a crush on the guy.

Maybe she did.

But even if she didn't, Tsubaki wanted to find him. He had . . . He had wielded her while she was in the Uncanny Sword and he hadn't seemed disgusted with her afterwards. He had changed between her forms like it was nothing. He understood how to fight with her.

If anyone could be a good partner for her, it was him.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

During the entire lesson, the only time that Maka looked up from the book she was reading was when the door slammed down in the middle of the lesson.

She had been doing better with Soul over the past week. Soul had mentioned a while back that he had something to show her, but they had never gotten around to it. They had been training, always training. Maka honestly thought that soon they could start training for the Witch-Hunt Slash.

She had also made a new friend. A girl named Tsubaki, who was a shadow weapon who had six different forms, including one that she wouldn't show to Maka. They got along well, although she seemed to be depressed about something. That was before Liz had told Maka that Tsubaki's partner had been killed in the last raid.

Maka couldn't understand that. She had only known Soul for a short time, but just the thought of losing him made her chest squeeze uncomfortably. Maka tried not to think about what that meant because she didn't want to lay down roots down here. She didn't want to become comfortable here.

Maka turned and looked at her white-haired partner, who was leaning back in his chair with his hands bent behind his head, dozing off. Since he seemed not to be paying attention to her, she stared at him unashamedly, the way that she never felt that she could when she was awake.

Soul was attractive. Soul had always been attractive, from the moment that she had met him. He had a rugged handsomeness that others could only try to achieve. Maka's cheeks suddenly flushed and she moved her eyes back to the book that she had been reading, berating herself for such thoughts.

What was she doing? She had bigger goals, an ultimate end that was much more important that any fanciful romance that she could dream up.

Besides . . . Maka looked down at herself . . . she wasn't anything that would be pursued anyway. She didn't have the looks or the docile personality that guys wanted.

In the middle of the class, the door slammed open.

Black, wearing his typical black funnel-necked shirt and bandages up to his shoulders, stood behind the door, leg raised up, having obviously kicked it down.

For once, Stein looked up from his dissection over at Black, who had shoved his hands into his pockets and scrunched his shoulders up around his ears. "Well, someone's late."

Black glanced over at the teacher after looking around at the rest of the class, who were listening into every word being said. "Recon mission. Just got back."

The murmuring started. Maka rolled her eyes. What did it matter? Kid went on missions a lot too; clearly it wasn't that rare.

Behind her, Maka heard a sharp gasp. She glanced behind her to Tsubaki, who had taken the seat next to Liz like she always did. Tsubaki was wide-eyed and had her hand over her mouth in a gesture of shock.

Maka glanced back at Black, who was uncomfortable while Stein just stared at him.

"Well, then, Black, you might want to take your seat."

"Yeah."

Black stalked up the stairs of the lecture hall-like classroom and the talking stopped as he passed by each row of students. Black didn't seem to appreciate the attention, although he didn't say anything about it. Maka glanced behind her, expecting him to take his usual seat in the back of the classroom and sleep for the rest of the period—no disciple, honestly, how had he gotten to be a field agent?—but Black froze as soon as he got to her row.

Maka looked around her, to see if there was anything of interest that he could be stopping for, but there wasn't anything out of the ordinary. It was her and Soul, and a couple other students that she hadn't learned the names of yet.

Then she realized that he wasn't looking at her row. He was looking at Tsubaki, who was staring at him with wide eyes.

Now, normally, if Maka saw a bandaged and vague man—even if he was shorter than her—cause a girl to react like that, she would assume something akin to rape and go after him with guns blazing. But Tsubaki's soft brown eyes weren't filled with fear. Rather, there was surprise and something like devotion in them.

Like they had met before and Tsubaki never expected to see him again.

Black had a shell-shocked look on his face, like he never actually thought to come in contact with her again.

Perhaps there was a love affair going on that Maka didn't know about?

But Liz seemed just as confused.

Tsubaki collected herself and smiled sweetly towards him, which seemed to come as a surprise to Black. She gestured towards Black and held out a hand to him.

Black took it and sat down next to her.

Maka tried to ignore his snoring for the rest of the bell, even when it ruffled her pigtails.

"Lazy bastard."

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

Soul just wanted to know what the hell was going on.

Over the course of the period, as Black's soft snores continued to interrupt Maka's reading, she got madder and madder. Soul was seriously expecting to have to hold Maka back.

Which, as Soul leered over towards his partner, he didn't think that he would mind in the slightest.

Tsubaki kept sending shy glances towards the field agent and biting her lip, like she was contemplating something. Liz, at the same time, kept staring at Tsubaki, trying to figure out what was going on inside the girl's head. Kid was oblivious and was for once paying attention to Stein's words.

Just Stein. Not Professor Stein. That sadistic bastard would never be a professor in his eyes. Although Soul did have to thank him for teaching him how to fight by himself, without a partner. Stein, however cruel he may be, was probably the only father figure that he still had.

Family . . . Soul tried not to think of the only one he had left behind.

Or maybe the one that had left him behind.

He couldn't decide, and in the end, it didn't really matter.

He still hadn't shown Maka the piano. Soul knew that he probably should, especially since Maka was going to try to attempt the Witch-Hunt Slash soon, and there would be no hiding it then.

Soul glanced behind him at Black. Soul hadn't seen Black up close for a while. Around two years ago, back when Soul was sixteen, Black, the other half of the 'Problem Two' as they were called, approached him about the possibility of them becoming partners. Soul had vaguely tried to ward Black off, but Black had shrugged and told Soul that he already knew everything about the incident and what Soul had become.

When Soul had questioned his knowledge, Black simply said that he had been around DWMA for a long time—you pick up some things.

Soul had attempted it, since Black already knew about his history and his condition.

There were problems.

Soul had expected the usual—that his wavelength would corrode Black's and burn his hands. If they attempted extended periods of fighting, Soul would most likely kill Black. But that didn't happen.

Instead, Soul had been overwhelmed by the strength of Black's wavelength. Soul found it impossible to even consider that he could adjust his wavelength to suit Black's. It was just overwhelming. There was no other way to say it. Soul's corrosive wavelength couldn't even break through.

Despite their disastrous attempts at becoming partners, Black still kept in contact occasionally and came down to the lab in between his missions, which seemed to be numerous. Black had once told him that he came and saw Soul every time that he had a day off and sometimes there would be three or four month spans of time in between his visits.

Soul knew little to nothing about Black. But he did know that Black was cocky and confident in his abilities, and had the skill to back up any bragging that he told. At one point or another, he had saved nearly half of the DWMA students.

Soul didn't know if the feelings were returned, but he considered the two of them friends.

In the middle of his musing, the bell rang.

He hadn't learned a single thing in that lesson. Oh well. He had learned everything about dissection in his three years as Stein's lab assistant anyway.

Behind him, Tsubaki reached over to try to wake Black, but as soon as her hand came close to his shoulder, Black suddenly caught her wrist loosely. Tsubaki jolted in surprise. She began to apologize rapidly.

Black smiled slightly and held onto her wrist just a moment too long.

Soul watched them as they walked out of the classroom together, Tsubaki trailing just slightly behind Black, who had placed his hands behind his head as they walked.

"They have got to be the weirdest couple that I've ever seen," Soul mused out loud.

Everyone else silently agreed.

* * *

UoUoUoUoUoU

* * *

Tsubaki walked behind Black through the crowded hallways. The people always seemed to part when Black by them, whispering to themselves. Black ignored them, but Tsubaki couldn't help but glance around at the other students.

She wasn't completely sure why she was following him, but he seemed to have no complaints.

"Why are they staring at you?" Tsubaki asked quietly.

Black glanced back at her curiously. "Around here, Soul and I are known as the 'Problem Two.' We attract a bit of attention. Me more than Soul usually."

"The 'Problem Two'?"

"The only two students in the school who are completely incompatible with every partner." Black didn't look at her while he spoke. "Of course, it doesn't really apply anymore. Soul finally seems to have found his other half."

Tsubaki looked at Black with sympathetic eyes. "You've never partnered with anyone?"

"Nope. Never gotten close to anyone to even wield them, let alone become their partner."

Tsubaki bit her lip. "You wielded me."

Black glanced back at her in shock and looked as if he wanted to say something, but he turned back front and changed the subject. "What about your partners? You . . . just lost him, didn't you?"

Tsubaki shrugged, and Black looked a bit confused by the gesture.

"You are very casual about his death," Black observed bluntly.

"There's nothing really to say. He didn't treat me well. He was my fifth partner in just a little over two years. Before that I was stuck in the Academy, and DWMA never really knew what to do with me because I was a shadow weapon. Nobody has a specialty in a shadow weapon, and they didn't have the time to train a meister to learn each of my forms. But after I . . . gained the Uncanny Sword, it was like I was suddenly invaluable."

"So you were shoved to the back and then suddenly brought to the front when you became special. Typical."

Tsubaki shrugged. "It's alright. I don't understand why they did it. Not one of my meisters ever once touched the Uncanny Sword. They were scared of it. They were scared of me."

"I'm not."

Tsubaki looked at him suddenly. As they had walked, they had gotten further and further away from the rest of the students, until Black was leading her into the abandoned west wing. After a raid by the Star Clan nearly demolished this part of the school, it had been closed for reconstructions that had never had the time to occur.

Here, the paint was chipped and falling off. The floorboards creaked and entire sections of the hallway were completely gone. It had been twelve years since that raid on the DWMA, and the Star Clan had never tried any of the attacks since then, but some of the scorch marks looked . . . fresh.

"Where are we?" Tsubaki asked.

"My playground, I guess," Black said as he stretched his hands behind his head. "This is where I live."

Tsubaki reached a hand to touch one of the broken beams. "You don't live in the dorms with the rest of the students?"

"I've never been welcome there."

There was a brief moment of silence, but then Tsubaki smiled brightly at Black, who seemed a bit shocked at her reaction.

"Well, then they don't know what they're missing."

Black sat down on a chunk of blasted-away wall, bringing one knee up to his chest while the other hung loose. "Tsubaki, are you hanging out around me because I saved you? Is that the only reason behind it?"

Tsubaki shook her head and turned back to tracing her hands across the scorch marks, which came back black on her hands.

"That's not it. You were just the first person to accept me. Well, to accept all of me."

"You mean the Uncanny Sword."

"Like I said, not one of my partners even looked at the Uncanny Sword." Tsubaki sighed. "But I suppose that I understand. I mean, if I was an outsider, I wouldn't want to deal with the Uncanny Sword either. It would kill you first."

"You're very forgiving, aren't you?"

Tsubaki shrugged and sat down next to Black, but with comfortable distance between the two of them. "Maybe. I really don't think that I am."

"Even when the Uncanny Sword is your final gift from your brother?"

Tsubaki flinched and looked over at Black in shock. "How did you know that?"

" . . . I'm Covert Ops. I have the ability to look at all of the students' files, yours included."

"Wow. Why are you a student if you have that rank?"

Black looked at her with a curious look on his face. "It's because I don't have a partner."

Silence stretched between them. Warm wind blew through the cracks in the walls and the broken ceiling. Tsubaki's hair whipped around her face, but a few strands were caught by a bandaged and gloved hand. She paused for a moment and suddenly blushed heavily as Black ran his hands through her hair.

"Short hair doesn't suit you."

"I know that it doesn't."

"You should grow it out. You'd look very beautiful."

Slight pink turned to dark red as Black slowly allowed the strands of dark hair fall off of his fingers. Neither of them spoke for a while, but when they did, they both spoke at the same time.

"Do you—"

"I know that you—"

Both of them stopped. Tsubaki gestured to Black.

"You go first."

Black cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I know that you just lost your previous partner, but I _have _to find a partner soon in this war or I won't be able to fight against White Star. And I think that I've finally found the perfect weapon to suit a big guy like me. So, would you-"

"Yes."

Black looked up at her in surprise.

She gave him a brilliant smile. "Yes, I'll be your partner."

The biggest smile that she had ever seen graced his face.


End file.
